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This issue about “all faiths teach the same values” or “all religions are good” has been heard a lot. But the concept is only partly correct, NOT entirely. Therefore, one needs to be careful before joining the chorus of “all religions are the same.” The reality is different. It is no doubt true that the ethical values of all faiths are similar. But that cannot be said concerning their spiritual values. For instance, all religions profess that it is wrong to steal, to kill, to be dishonest, to commit adultery or fornication, to be unkind to parents, relatives, neighbors and humanity in general, etc. All such issues constitute the ethical side of every faith and may have a high degree of uniformity. However, every faith does not portray the same ideology about God, and this constitutes the spiritual/religious side of faith.

Concerning spiritual and religious notions, Islam is different and is the final word for all those who adhere to the Glorious Quran. The Quran clearly mentions that we ought to follow only the path shown by Allah in its entirety (spiritual + ethical). If we consider other guidelines, we run the risk of being parted from His way.

“And (He commands you, saying) : This is My straight path, so follow it Follow not other ways, lest you be parted from His way: This has He ordained for you, that you may ward off (evil)” (6:153) Al-An’am

"And Allah's is the direction of the way, and some (roads) go not straight." (16:9) Al-Nahl.

“ ….. And set your faces, upright (toward Him) at every place of worship and call upon Him, making religion pure for Him (only). As He brought you into being, so return you (unto Him).” (7:29) Al-Araf

“He it is who has sent His messenger with the guidance and the religion of truth, that He may make it conqueror of all religion however much idolaters may be averse.” (61:9)

“And cry not unto any other god along with Allah. ……..” (28:88)

And whoso seeks as religion other than the Surrender (to Allah) it will not be accepted from him, and he will be a loser in the Hereafter. (3:85)

Say (O Muhammad): I am forbidden to worship those unto whom you cry beside Allah since there have come unto me clear proofs from my Rab, and I am commanded to surrender to the Rab of the Worlds. (40:66)

The above verses (and many more) clearly imply that the path of spiritual conduct that Allah Almighty has commanded to be followed in the Quran is different from those of other faiths. As already mentioned, only certain rules of ethics are common between Islam and other religions. But the various spiritual factors are very different. Therefore, the ideology of life highlighted in the Quran in its entirety (ethical + spiritual) is different from those of other faiths. Thus, accepting and implementing the ethical + spiritual rules of another faith would definitely lead to a clash of values with the Glorious Quran.

For example, to my utter astonishment, I recently met a couple who identified themselves as “Muslims” for they were born in Muslim families, yet were seriously supportive of the theory of re-incarnation. I was baffled by the inconsistency of their sense of logic. Allah says in the Quran, loud and clear, that every soul is responsible and answerable for its own deeds. This concept is one of the cornerstones of the Glorious Quran.

“And no burdened soul can bear another's burden, ……. He who grows (in goodness), grows only for himself, (he cannot by his merit redeem others). Unto Allah is the journeying.” (35:18)

“And guard yourselves against a day when no soul will in aught avail another, …” (2:48)

Also, Allah has inspired each human soul (separately) with a conscience and awareness of right & wrong. It’s the responsibility of every individual to select their path of conduct. Those who allow their conscience to grow are the successful ones in His sight, while those who keep it stunted are the losers.

“And a soul and Him who perfected itAnd inspired it (with conscience of) what is wrong for it and (what is) right for it.He is indeed successful who causes it to grow,And he is indeed a failure who stunts it.” (91:7-10) Ash-Shams

Again, the above verses and many more clearly indicate that there is absolutely NO room in Islam for the acceptance of concepts such as the re-incarnation theory. Anyone who trusts the infallibility of Divine Justice would totally reject such a bizarre concept that talks about a single soul being shared by several living beings as claimed by the phoney theory of re-incarnation.

It makes me wonder that if such “Muslims” are acquainted with the spiritual dictates of the Glorious Quran (which they claim they are), how do they reconcile their beliefs based on other sources with the established principles and norms of the Quran ??

Allah has confirmed that the Glorious Quran is a continuation and reminder of the former Divine Scriptures that were corrupted and altered by its followers with the passage of time. Thus, Allah mentions in the Quran that all prophets came with the same basic spiritual message, that is, there is only One God, He has no partners, and He is the sole Creator of the entire universe and the heavens, Who is All Powerful and All Knowing.

“And unto thee have We revealed the Scripture with the truth, confirming whatever Scripture was before it, and a watcher over it. So judge between them by that which Allah hath revealed, and follow not their desires away from the truth which hath come unto thee. ………. Unto Allah ye will all return, and He will then inform you of that wherein ye differ.” (5:48) Al-Maidah

Both Moses and Jesus, son of Virgin Maryam, preached pure Islamic doctrine (i.e. surrender to One God). Later, the Jews and Christians deviated from strict Monotheism (Tawheed) because of their own innovations and beliefs. The Jews earned the wrath of Allah by worshiping the golden calf. Similarly, the Christians went astray by taking Jesus as God along with their belief of trinity.

“O People of the Scripture! Do not exaggerate in your religion nor utter aught concerning Allah save the truth. The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was only a messenger of Allah, and His word which He conveyed unto Mary, and a spirit from Him. So believe in Allah and His messengers, and say not "Three". Cease! (it is) better for you! Allah is only One God. Far is it removed from His transcendent majesty that He should have a son. His is all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth. And Allah is sufficient as Defender.” (4:171) An-Nissa

“And the Jews say: Ezra is the son of Allah, and the Christians say: The Messiah is the son of Allah. That is their saying with their mouths. They imitate the saying of those who disbelieved of old. Allah (himself) fighteth against them. How perverse are they!” (9:30) At-Taubah

Therefore, Islam is the only Religion that strictly adheres to Monotheism (Tawheed) portraying the image of the Almighty, the One and Only, as the lone Supreme Creator Who has NO associates.

All other religions are named after a mere mortal or a human being except Islam. For example, Christianity was named after Christ, Buddhism was named after Buddha, Confucianism came from Confucius and Zoroastrianism from Zoroaster. Islam (complete surrender to Him and a state of peace) is the only True Religion from the Creator Himself, which as always existed since the beginning of time was not ascribed or named after no mortal or human being, Alhamdulillah.

As a Muslim I can NEVER say that I believe in all religions. That would be contradictory to my Islamic beliefs. I can say that I respect all religions, but I believe only in ISLAM because if I say I believe in all then I cannot call myself a Muslim. I repeat, here I am primarily referring to the spiritual & religious aspect of religion. Needless to mention, emphasis on the Unity of Allah is the most important cornerstone of Faith, without which there can be no Faith. Thus, this is the first and foremost concept that must be taken into consideration .. and in this regard there's a marked difference between Islam and other religions.

Hence, much against the modern-day rhetoric, the underlying message of all religions is NOT the same. This is simply a shrewd protocol of secular diplomacy, or possibly a product of twisted human philosophies. The Glorious existence of the Almighty Allah is not a mere ‘philosophy,’ rather it is the most significant Truth.

As so correctly stated by a Calgary imam – “Allah says in the Quran that the only religion and way of life acceptable to Him is Islam (the surrender to Him). The spiritual ideology of other faiths have been changed and are no more the same as Islam. For example, the Christians say that Prophet Jesus is the “son of God” which as Muslims, we can never accept. These words do not conform with the dictates of the Quran.” The imam added: “When we say that Islam is the only way of life acceptable to Allah, this does not mean we must hate the people of others religions. We need to be respectful and tolerant as per the rules of the Quran, and at the same time we have to bear in mind that the religious rules of other faiths are not compatible with Islam.”

Saadia Dehlavi, an accomplished Pakistani Muslim journalist states in one of her articles – “It is difficult for non-Muslims the world over to understand the Muslim conviction of faith. However obscure we may seem, we cannot adhere to the social requirement of stating 'I believe in all religions' simply because Islam does not allow such statements. My friends and acquaintances in India often tell me that I am communal because they come with me for ziarat but I do not go to the temples to pray. I respect all religions, but I cannot believe in them, for then I would cease to be a Muslim.”

Last night I came across the following vese in Surah Al-Imran that's also a very apt quote for this post.

And whoso seeketh as religion other than the Surrender (to Allah) it will not be accepted from him, and he will be a loser in the Hereafter. (3:85)

Great verse, sister. It's very apt for this post. There's also Verse 32 in Chapter 10, Surah Yunus that says: "Such then is Allah, your rightful Lord. After the Truth what is there saving error ? How then are ye turned away!"

The words "After the Truth what is there saving error?" is a clear reminder that the Ultimate Truth i.e. Allah is just One and there is absolutely NO concept or question of combining the different spiritual ideas of other faiths with the concept of Allah as mentioned in the Glorious Quraan. Alhamdulilah.

And here is another clear dictate of every soul being responsible for itself. And no misguided soul can forcibly misguide another soul, unless that other soul itself gets swayed through its own weakness.

"O ye who believe! Ye have charge of your own souls. He who erreth cannot injure you if ye are rightly guided. Unto Allah ye will all return; and then He will inform you of what ye used to do." 5:105

This is such a refreshing piece. I read it before few times but somehow didn't have the time to comment. In Ramadan, gathering more time for study made me want to go through it yet again. It's a great one to send to hypocrites who try to be the "goodie goodie pacifists" and talk so much of illogical humbug.

I have a distant relative, a belligerent heathen and a very bad lady. Yesterday she came over in one of her unwelcomed annual visits and started arguing in support of the multifaith hogwash. I must say, it was intensely irritating. She simply cannot refrain from this topic even though she knows everyone in our household is strongly against the multifaith rubbish. I silently logged into my computer, came to MV and searched out this post. Then I read it to her slowly and articulately, first telling her not to interrupt until I've finished. She had to silently listen with a frown as I read. But when I finished, she had nothing to say other than harboring a load of anger inside of her.

Thanks again for this post Sister Zeynab. This multifaith bullshit is taking those quality buffoons for a comical ride.

LOL ,, I know Sister. Some of these so-called relatives and friends who try to act westernized and what they call "open-minded" talk such heavy duty nonsense! It's a fantasy in their minds and they use it to carve an identity for themselves which they never had. They think that such behavior makes them look very "modern and intelligent." Pathetic!